<h6><strong>Ane Barcos/Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>Brussels is considering imposing tariffs of up to 25% on a wide range of US imported goods in response to President Donald Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum. Meanwhile, the Council of Ministers approved the Royal Decree-Law containing urgent measures to address the tariff threat and to relaunch trade.</strong></h4> The Commission's proposal, which was first reported by Reuters on Monday night, includes products such as soybeans, sweet corn, rice, almonds, orange juice, cranberries, tobacco, iron, steel, aluminum, certain ships and vehicles, textiles, specific clothing, and various types of cosmetics. According to the proposal, tariffs on some of these products would take effect on May 16, while others would be applied on December 1. The European Union's response will begin with a first package of measures on April 15, followed by another on May 15, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič announced after the Foreign Affairs Council held on Monday in Luxembourg, where the EU's planned countermeasures, which will be sent to member states for review, were discussed. The Commission's original proposal also contemplated the inclusion of products such as bourbon, wine, and dairy products. However, these items were removed from the list, according to Reuters, due to concerns about possible US retaliation, such as the imposition of a 200% tariff on EU alcoholic beverages, which would particularly affect countries like France and Italy. While the first package of countermeasures is being finalized, Brussels is keeping open the possibility of negotiations with the Trump administration. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed this Monday that the EU has proposed a "zero-for-zero" tariff agreement on industrial goods to the United States, a type of agreement the EU has previously implemented with other trading partners. <h5><strong>The Spanish Response Plan</strong></h5> Meanwhile, the Council of Ministers approved this Tuesday the Royal Decree-Law for the activation of the first 7.72 billion euros of the Trade Response and Relaunch Plan, presented on April 3 by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in response to Trump's decision to raise tariffs on European products to 20 percent. The plan will include 14.1 billion euros to mitigate the negative impacts of the trade war and "build a shield" to protect the Spanish economy. In the press conference following the Council of Ministers meeting, the Minister of Economy, Trade, and Business, Carlos Cuerpo, reported that this 7.72 billion euros of new funding exceeds the amount initially planned for in the Plan by 220 million euros, as a result of the negotiations he held with the parliamentary groups. These measures, according to Cuerpo, are additional to those adopted by the EU to respond to Trump's "unjustified and, moreover, arbitrary measures," which have already been felt in the markets and in the 20 percent drop in the main US stock index over the last month. This "confirms the error of the approach of entering into trade conflict measures, protectionist measures, and thus moving towards a more fragmented, impoverished world." Cuerpo—who will appear this Wednesday in the Congress of Deputies to report on the government's measures—also expressed his hope that the parliamentary groups will approve this Royal Decree-Law when it is due to be ratified in the Lower House, within a maximum period of one month. In this regard, he emphasized that the text includes some contributions from the PP, such as the government's appearance every three months in Parliament to report on the progress of these measures and the aforementioned increase of 220 million euros over the initial proposal. However, the People’s Party itself has regretted that the government has not incorporated "any more proposals" than those put forward by its leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who will travel to Brussels this Wednesday to discuss with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the need for a "firm but measured" response to Trump's tariffs, according to the party in a press release.
